Umbilical cord milking reduces need for red cell transfusions and improves neonatal adaptation in preterm infants: Meta-analysis.

AimTo assess effects of umbilical cord milking (UCM) on early blood pressure stabilization, hemoglobin (Hb), as well as incidence of transfusion and complications in preterm infants. MethodsThis meta-analysis was conducted by searching the Pubmed, EMBASE and Cochrane Library (until July 2014) databases. Any clinical trials, including randomized control trials, comparing UCM to immediate cord clamping (ICC) were analyzed. ResultsSix studies were included in this meta-analysis. In total, 292 preterm infants were treated with UCM, while 295 received ICC. Compared to ICC, UCM increased initial Hb significantly by 1.84g/dL (weighted mean difference; 95%CI: 0.91-2.76; P<0.0001) and decreased the incidence of transfusion with a pooled risk ratio of 0.74 (95%CI: 0.61-0.90; P=0.002). Incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and mortality were significantly lower with UCM compared with ICC. Apgar score and temperature were not significantly different between the two groups. ConclusionsBy facilitating the early stabilization of blood pressure, UCM at preterm birth was found to be comparatively safe and associated with lower blood transfusion exposure and lower incidence of IVH, NEC and death.